


Mermaid Man

by klaviergavout



Category: The SpongeBob Musical - Various/Anthony & Coulton/Jarrow
Genre: Gen, friendship and sadness and mermaid man, i love these two so much...., theyve got normal names but human Bodies, this could be taken as platonic or romantic but there are a lot of mentions of friendship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-12
Updated: 2017-10-12
Packaged: 2019-01-16 13:42:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 542
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12343821
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/klaviergavout/pseuds/klaviergavout
Summary: Spongebob and Patrick have had a weekly marathon of their favourite TV show since forever, but this week, there's something else on Spongebob's mind.





	Mermaid Man

**Author's Note:**

> Dedicated to my lovely friend @chickenmcidiot on tumblr, who loves the musical and the show more than life itself (which I can admit is a very relatable mood). ❤︎

If you ask Patrick Star what his idea of true comfort is, he'll usually reply with one of three answers: _sitting at home with loads of food,_ _sitting at home with loads of TV,_ or simply _sitting at home_ if he wants to end the conversation quicker. However, nothing in the whole world can compare to moments like these: lying on the couch doing nothing, his best friend in the whole world draped across him, Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy saving the underwater world on the big screen, Krusty Krab takeout boxes scattered haphazardly around the floor.

(Sure, their weekly Mermaid Man-rathons fulfills his whole sitting at home with food and TV idea of comfort, but the addition of Spongebob giving his usual elated commentary of the show makes things a lot more enjoyable; his best friend's presence generally makes _everything_ a lot more enjoyable, to be fair.)

He doesn't notice how silent his friend's actually been for the past half an hour or so until he hears the sigh from just below his shoulder, the sad little shift of a head moving up to rest gently beside his own. "Patrick, why are you friends with me?"

Patrick can't believe what he's hearing- Spongebob Squarepants, questioning their best-friends-forevership?- but when he diverts his eyes away from Barnacle Boy's fearsome moves to looks down at his friend, he spots the sadness immediately.

"Well," he starts, trying his best to think while an exciting cartoon battle is occurring mere feet in front of him, "you're really friendly, and nice, and we always have fun together--"

"No, no, no, no, Patrick, why are you friends with _me?"_ Spongebob punctuates the word by stabbing a stubby finger into his chest. "There are so many really friendly people in Bikini Bottom that you could have fun with. It's the friendliest town in the world! You don't need a simple sponge like me."

Patrick can't hold back a wince when he hears those last words. Ever since Spongebob's employer and long-time idol, Mr. Krabs, had called him a 'simple sponge', he'd been obsessed with trying to prove himself. He'd also been more stressed, upset, and generally unhappy- and even though any normal person in Bikini Bottom hadn't noticed any change in the fry cook's usual unfailing optimism, it had been clear to Patrick Star (before he'd even been told the truth, no less) that something was definitely wrong.

Now, he reaches for Spongebob's clammy hand and takes it in his own, scattered memories of years past all returning to him at once. Hugging. Bubble blowing. Jellyfishing. Watching several seasons of The Adventures of Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy in one night. Eating Krusty Krab takeouts and making model submarines out of the boxes. Holding hands until everything felt okay, until everything was under their control again, until no one existed but the two of them, connected.

"I'm friends with you 'cause you make me happy no matter what we do," says Patrick finally. "You're not simple to me. You're-- you're  _amazing._ "

When a small hand squeezes his own tightly back, he smiles wide, listens closely for the commentary as the minutes tick past--

"Come on, Mermaid Man, what are you doing?! Man Ray's right there!"

There it is.


End file.
